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The reachability study

We began writing to every national pension authority in our index on 15 August 2026, asking each of them the same six questions. The questions are set out in full below.

Each authority has until Friday 25 September 2026 to answer.

On Thursday 1 October 2026 we publish what each one said, and which ones said nothing.

The methodology is published in advance, before any answer to these six questions has been received. Read the methodology.

The six questions

Each authority received these in identical wording.

  1. Contact. How may a former member now living abroad contact you, in writing, from outside the country?
  2. Identity. Can that person establish their identity to you without a national digital identity credential, and if not what is the alternative?
  3. Presence. Can a claim be completed in full without the person physically appearing in the country?
  4. Death. Where a member has died abroad, what is the route for their heirs and what documents are required?
  5. Discovery. Is there any register, statement or service through which a person may discover an entitlement they have forgotten?
  6. Publication. We will publish your answer with the source and the date. If anything in it is wrong or incomplete, tell us by 25 September 2026 and we will correct it in public, in full, beside the original.

What institutions have told us

Every institution in this study is sent the same six questions and, where it replies, its own entry. What follows is what they told us, in their own words where they wrote in their own language. Our English rendering is labelled as ours. Corrections are published in full, with the source and the date, beside the original.

Institutions that have answered

Sicherheitsfonds BVG, Zentralstelle 2. Saeule, Switzerland

17 August 2026

Answered in full, and confirmed this entry in writing.

Schriftlicher Kontakt per E-Mail an info@sfbvg.ch oder per Post an Sicherheitsfonds BVG, Eigerplatz 2, Postfach 1023, 3000 Bern 14. Zum Identitaetsnachweis genuegt eine Kopie des Identitaetsausweises. Ein persoenliches Erscheinen in der Schweiz ist nicht erforderlich. Im Todesfall sind die Formulare der Homepage ebenfalls anwendbar; beizulegen sind Kopien des Todesscheins und eines amtlichen Belegs zur Verwandtschaft, etwa Familienausweis, Erbbescheinigung oder Geburtsurkunde. Die Kopien muessen nicht beglaubigt werden. Die Suche erfolgt ueber das Formular auf sfbvg.ch/aufgaben/suche-vorgehen, einzureichen per E-Mail oder Post.

Our English rendering: Written contact by email to info@sfbvg.ch or by post to Sicherheitsfonds BVG, Eigerplatz 2, Postfach 1023, 3000 Bern 14. A copy of an identity document is sufficient proof of identity. Attending in person in Switzerland is not required. In a death case the forms on their website also apply; enclose copies of the death certificate and official proof of relationship, such as a family record, certificate of inheritance or birth certificate. The copies do not need to be certified. The search is made using the form at sfbvg.ch/aufgaben/suche-vorgehen, submitted by email or post.

They also confirmed that copies do not need to be certified, which is unusual in this study.

Liechtensteinische AHV-IV-FAK, Liechtenstein

18 August 2026

Answered in full, and confirmed this entry in writing.

Schriftlicher Kontakt per Post an AHV-IV-FAK, Gerberweg 2, 9490 Vaduz. Fuer kleinere Anfragen genuegt E-Mail an ahv@ahv.li. Fuer Personen mit Wohnsitz im EWR, in einem EFTA-Staat oder im Vereinigten Koenigreich wird der Antrag bei der Institution des Wohnsitzstaates eingereicht, welche die Identitaet nach ihren eigenen Regeln prueft und den Antrag weiterleitet. Personen mit Wohnsitz ausserhalb dieser Staaten nehmen direkt Kontakt auf, wobei E-Mail genuegt. Ein persoenliches Erscheinen in Liechtenstein ist nicht erforderlich. Im Todesfall besteht kein Sparkapital, auf das Erben Anspruch haetten, da es sich um ein Umlageverfahren handelt. Witwen, Witwer und Waisen einer Person mit liechtensteinischer Versicherungskarriere koennen jedoch Anspruch auf eine Witwen-, Witwer- oder Waisenrente haben, nach demselben Verfahren wie bei einer Altersrente. Ein oeffentliches Register der Versicherten besteht nicht. Der Weg zur Entdeckung eines vergessenen Anspruchs ist der Auszug aus dem Individuellen Konto, anzufordern ueber ahv.li/online-schalter/ik-auszug-anfordern mit einer Kopie eines Identitaetsausweises.

Our English rendering: Written contact by post to AHV-IV-FAK, Gerberweg 2, 9490 Vaduz. Email to ahv@ahv.li is sufficient for smaller enquiries. For people resident in the EEA, an EFTA state or the United Kingdom, the application is made to the institution of the country of residence, which verifies identity under its own rules and forwards it. People resident outside those states make contact directly, and email is sufficient. Attending in person in Liechtenstein is not required. In a death case there is no capital sum to which heirs are entitled, because the system is pay as you go. Widows, widowers and orphans of someone with a Liechtenstein insurance record may however be entitled to a survivor pension, by the same procedure as an old age pension. There is no public register of insured persons. The route to discovering a forgotten entitlement is the extract from the individual account, requested at ahv.li/online-schalter/ik-auszug-anfordern with a copy of an identity document.

Valsts socialas apdrosinasanas agentura, State Social Insurance Agency, Latvia

17 August 2026

Answered five of the six questions. The reply came from their consultation service rather than a named officeholder, so we name the institution only.

Contact
“By writing an e-mail to: konsultacijas@vsaa.gov.lv or by calling consultation hotline +371 64507020.”
Identity
“If a person has a lenght of service in Latvia, usually he/she also has a latvian personal code. We can also try to identify the person by name, surname, adress, phone number etc.”
Presence
“it can be filled and sent pension through competent authority of United Kingdom, Department for Work and Pensions (DWP). Presence in Latvia physically is not mandatory.”
Death case
Heirs contact the Office of Citizenship and Migration Affairs, pmlp.gov.lv, so the death is registered in Latvia, and then contact the agency by the routes above.
Discovery
“Person can inquire by contacting SSIA.”

They also state that the right to a pension can only be considered once an application has been received.

Ceska sprava socialniho zabezpeceni, Czech Republic

18 August 2026

Answered on the discovery route.

Zadost lze podat i v cizim jazyce. Vypisy dob pojisteni zasilame i do zahranici.

Our English rendering: The request may also be submitted in a foreign language. We send extracts of insurance periods abroad as well.

The document is the informativni osobni list duchodoveho pojisteni, the individual pension insurance record, available under section 40a of Act No. 582/1991 Coll. It covers periods of pension insurance and, from 1986, assessment bases and excluded periods.

It can be requested by letter, by data box, or electronically with a qualified electronic signature sent to the electronic registry at posta@cssz.cz. Where a person has no electronic signature, the institution recommends applying by post.

The request must state birth number, first name, surname, birth surname and the address the record should be sent to.

Postal address: CSSZ, Krizova 25, 225 08 Praha 5.

The statutory period for sending the record is 90 days from delivery of the request.

National Pension Service, Center for International Affairs, Korea

18 August 2026

Replied, and stated that this question falls outside its authority.

“the Center for International Affairs is responsible for international cooperation matters, including the implementation of social security agreements, and we do not have the authority to provide official answers regarding the general procedures and services covered in your inquiry. For inquiries regarding overseas access to the Korean National Pension System, please submit your questions through the official website of the National Pension Service.”

The department that handles social security agreements is the part of the institution a former contributor abroad would expect to reach. We have followed the route it gave.

PUBLICA, Switzerland

11 August 2026, entry confirmed 17 August 2026

Confirmed this entry in writing.

They publish no figures on insured persons who cannot be reached, and gave a structural reason: unclaimed exit benefits pass to the Stiftung Auffangeinrichtung BVG once the statutory period expires, so figures at the level of a single fund would carry little meaning.

This is why a search that ends at a former employer's fund can end too early.

Government Employees Pension Fund, South Africa

17 August 2026

Confirmed its entry in writing.

They gave the only precise definition of an unclaimed benefit obtained in this study: a benefit is unclaimed where the mode of exit and the last day of service are known, but the benefit is not paid within 24 months of the last day of service. Their published list of unclaimed benefits is distributed within South Africa only, and there is no separate breakdown for members believed to be living abroad.

Replies received, answers pending

Natsionalen osiguritelen institut, Bulgaria

Request registered 17 August 2026 under reference 1030-40-3169. Their automated receipt states that documents in the proceeding, including the individual administrative act itself, are delivered to the person's profile in the Secure Electronic Delivery System, and that a person without such a profile may create one.

Instituto Mexicano del Seguro Social, Mexico

Request registered 17 August 2026 under folio 340018002758226 through the national transparency platform, under the general transparency and access to public information law. The institution stated its own statutory dates, with a response due by 14 September 2026, or by 29 September 2026 where it notifies an extension. The response is retrieved inside the platform.

Centre des technologies de l'information de l'Etat, Luxembourg

Replied 17 August 2026 that our questions are under internal verification and that they will come back to us.

Ministry of Labour and Social Insurance, Cyprus

Replied 17 August 2026 that the request was forwarded to the Social Insurance Department, registry@sid.mlsi.gov.cy.

Australian Taxation Office, Australia

Replied 17 August 2026 confirming receipt and that it will work to our deadline of 25 September 2026.

Public Trustee's Office, Ministry of Law, Singapore

Replied 17 August 2026 asking for time to come back on our questions.

Elaketurvakeskus, Finland

Acknowledged receipt on 17 August 2026.

De Nederlandsche Bank, Netherlands

Acknowledged receipt on 18 August 2026 and states it aims to reply within five working days.

If your institution appears in this study and you would like to see your entry before 1 October 2026, write to hello@pensionhunter.ai and we will send it to you.

The background research to this study, on who Europe's pension infrastructure does not reach, is published at The non-resident gap.

Right of reply

Any authority may correct anything we publish about it, at any time. Corrections are published in full, attributed and dated, alongside the original entry.

Read the standing right of reply.

The 53 systems

38 awaiting reply, 15 already in written correspondence with us. Sending began on 15 August 2026 and continues, so each row carries its own date and reads Not yet sent until its letter has gone. Where a date replied predates 15 August 2026, that authority answered earlier correspondence rather than these six questions, and the row says so. Where we have written to a published address, the route cell also says what happened to the message.

Sort by
CountryAuthorityRoute publishedStatusDate askedDate repliedCorrection
AustraliaAustralian Taxation Officein a transparency pageRepliedearlier correspondence15 August 202611 August 2026Right of reply
AustriaPension Insurance InstitutionPensionsversicherungsanstalton the contact pageRepliedearlier correspondence15 August 202611 August 2026Right of reply
BelgiumSigedis (DB2P)by another governmentAwaiting replyNot yet sentNot establishedRight of reply
BrazilNational Social Security InstituteInstituto Nacional do Seguro Socialon a press pageAwaiting reply15 August 2026Not establishedRight of reply
BulgariaNational Social Security InstituteNatsionalen osiguritelen instituton the contact pageRepliedearlier correspondence15 August 202614 August 2026Right of reply
CanadaOffice of the Superintendent of Financial Institutionson a press pageAwaiting reply15 August 2026Not establishedRight of reply
ChileInstitute of Social WelfareInstituto de Prevision Socialin a transparency pageAwaiting reply15 August 2026Not establishedRight of reply
CroatiaCroatian Pension Insurance InstituteHrvatski zavod za mirovinsko osiguranjeon the contact pageRepliedearlier correspondence15 August 202611 August 2026Right of reply
CyprusDepartment of Social Insurance Servicesby another governmentAwaiting replyNot yet sentNot establishedRight of reply
Czech RepublicCeska sprava socialniho zabezpeceni (CSSZ)not yet checkedAwaiting replyNot yet sentNot establishedRight of reply
DenmarkFinanstilsynet, the Danish FSAnot yet checkedAwaiting replyNot yet sentNot establishedRight of reply
EstoniaSocial Insurance Board (Sotsiaalkindlustusamet)not yet checkedAwaiting replyNot yet sentNot establishedRight of reply
FinlandFinnish Centre for Pensions (Elaketurvakeskus)not yet checkedAwaiting replyNot yet sentNot establishedRight of reply
FranceCaisse des Depots (Ciclade)on the contact pagedeliveredAwaiting reply15 August 2026Not establishedRight of reply
GermanyDeutsche Rentenversicherung Bundnot yet checkedAwaiting replyNot yet sentNot establishedRight of reply
Greecee-EFKAe-EFKAon the contact pageRepliedearlier correspondence15 August 202611 August 2026Right of reply
Hong KongMandatory Provident Fund Schemes Authorityin a privacy policyacknowledgedAwaiting reply15 August 2026Not establishedRight of reply
HungaryMagyar Allamkincstar, Hungarian State Treasurynot yet checkedAwaiting replyNot yet sentNot establishedRight of reply
IcelandTryggingastofnun, Social Insurance Administrationnot yet checkedAwaiting replyNot yet sentNot establishedRight of reply
IndiaEmployees' Provident Fund Organisationby another governmentAwaiting replyNot yet sentNot establishedRight of reply
IndonesiaBPJS KetenagakerjaanBPJAMSOSTEKon the contact pagedeliveredRepliedearlier correspondence15 August 202616 August 2026Right of reply
IrelandThe Pensions Authorityon the contact pageRepliedearlier correspondence15 August 20267 August 2026Right of reply
IsraelNational Insurance InstituteBituach Leumiin a transparency pageAwaiting reply15 August 2026Not establishedRight of reply
ItalyCOVIP, Commissione di vigilanza sui fondi pensionenot yet checkedAwaiting replyNot yet sentNot establishedRight of reply
JapanJapan Pension ServicerefusedAwaiting replyNot yet sentNot establishedRight of reply
LatviaState Social Insurance AgencyValsts socialas apdrosinasanas agenturaon the contact pageRepliedearlier correspondence15 August 202613 August 2026Right of reply
LiechtensteinAHV-IV-FAK Liechtenstein and the Financial Market AuthorityAHV-IV-FAK Liechtenstein, Finanzmarktaufsichton the contact pageRepliedearlier correspondence15 August 202612 August 2026Right of reply
LithuaniaState Social Insurance Fund BoardSodraon the contact pageRepliedearlier correspondence15 August 202610 August 2026Right of reply
LuxembourgGeneral Inspectorate of Social SecurityInspection generale de la securite socialeon the contact pageRepliedearlier correspondence15 August 202612 August 2026Right of reply
MalaysiaEmployees Provident Fund (KWSP)not yet checkedAwaiting replyNot yet sentNot establishedRight of reply
MaltaDepartment of Social Securitynot yet checkedAwaiting replyNot yet sentNot establishedRight of reply
MexicoMexican Social Security Institute and the National Commission for the Retirement Savings SystemInstituto Mexicano del Seguro Social, CONSARin a transparency pageAwaiting reply15 August 2026Not establishedRight of reply
NetherlandsDe Nederlandsche Banknot yet checkedAwaiting replyNot yet sentNot establishedRight of reply
New ZealandFinancial Markets Authorityin a form or PDFAwaiting reply15 August 2026Not establishedRight of reply
NorwayFinanstilsynet, the Financial Supervisory Authority of Norwayon a press pageAwaiting replyNot yet sentNot establishedRight of reply
PhilippinesSocial Security System (SSS)not yet checkedAwaiting replyNot yet sentNot establishedRight of reply
PolandZaklad Ubezpieczen Spolecznych (ZUS)in a transparency pageAwaiting replyNot yet sentNot establishedRight of reply
PortugalAutoridade de Supervisao de Seguros e Fundos de Pensoes (ASF)on the contact pagepartialAwaiting reply15 August 2026Not establishedRight of reply
RomaniaCasa Nationala de Pensii Publice (CNPP)not yet checkedAwaiting replyNot yet sentNot establishedRight of reply
SingaporeCentral Provident Fund Boardby another governmentpartialAwaiting reply15 August 2026Not establishedRight of reply
SlovakiaSocial Insurance AgencySocialna poistovnaon the contact pageRepliedearlier correspondence15 August 202611 August 2026Right of reply
SloveniaPension and Disability Insurance InstituteZavod za pokojninsko in invalidsko zavarovanje Slovenijeon the contact pageRepliedearlier correspondence15 August 202613 August 2026Right of reply
South AfricaGovernment Employees Pension Fundon the contact pageRepliedearlier correspondence15 August 202613 August 2026Right of reply
South KoreaNational Pension Service (NPS)by another governmentAwaiting replyNot yet sentNot establishedRight of reply
SpainDireccion General de Seguros y Fondos de Pensionesin a form or PDFAwaiting replyNot yet sentNot establishedRight of reply
SwedenPensionsmyndigheten, the Swedish Pensions Agencynot yet checkedAwaiting replyNot yet sentNot establishedRight of reply
SwitzerlandPUBLICAPensionskasse des Bundes PUBLICAin a privacy policyRepliedearlier correspondence15 August 202611 August 2026Right of reply
ThailandSecurities and Exchange Commission (SEC), Thailandnot yet checkedAwaiting replyNot yet sentNot establishedRight of reply
TurkeySocial Security InstitutionSosyal Guvenlik Kurumuin a form or PDFAwaiting reply15 August 2026Not establishedRight of reply
United Arab EmiratesGeneral Pension and Social Security Authorityin a privacy policyAwaiting replyNot yet sentNot establishedRight of reply
United KingdomDepartment for Work and Pensionsnot yet checkedAwaiting replyNot yet sentNot establishedRight of reply
United StatesEmployee Benefits Security Administration, US Department of Labornot yet checkedAwaiting replyNot yet sentNot establishedRight of reply
VietnamVietnam Social Securitynot yet checkedAwaiting replyNot yet sentNot establishedRight of reply

For most systems a written route does exist. Where it is published is the subject of this study.

This study covered 47 systems when the first letters were sent on 15 August 2026. Six systems were added on 16 August 2026, when our research established a written route to institutions we had not previously been able to reach: Israel, Chile, Mexico, Turkey, Brazil and Indonesia. Each was written to on the same terms and given the same deadline. The number will change again if we establish a route to a system now marked as not yet checked.

Last updated: · Available in 41 countries